Elastic-fluid turbine



Jan. 25, 1927. R. F HAM-WELL 615 69 ELASTIC FLUID TURBINE Filed June 1.1921 Inv entor': I Reginald FTI-lalliwell,

m H isAttorne sses-15 1 1, i 1 5 5 warren rsrar Es OFFICE.

REGINALD FRANCIS HALLIWELL, or LEAMINGTON SPA, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOB T GEN-ERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A conPonArIoN on NEW YORK.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE.

Application filed June 1,1921, Serial No. 474,144, and in Great BritainJune 7, 1920.

The present invention relates: to elastican ahead section 17 and areversing section fluid turbines and more particularly to.tur 18. Aheadsection 17 is supplied =with'elasbines used formarine propulsion andwhich ticfluid through a conduit 19 whichcomcomprise an ahead sectionand-a reversingi m-unicates with an annular steam chest or sectionmounted on the same shaft; .111 such nozzle chamber. 20 and thereversing section turbines, when one section is rotatingin its 18is'supplied with elastic fluid through a forward direction anddoingwork, the other. conduit 21 which communicates with'an ansection is idleand is rotated backwards in nular steam chest or nozzle chamber 22. deadsteam. A considerable. amount of, The rotor elements 23'and 241: of thelow 10 heat is. generated by the friction caused by pressure-turbine aremounted on a shaft25. theblades of the idle running rotor rotat-T1161Xl12111$b ends of turbine'sections 1'7 and ing' in the dead steam,therebeing danger 18 face toward each other and communicate ofthe rotor.and blading thereon reaching with an exhaust housing 26 which iscondangerously high temperatures under these ,nectcd to a suitablecondenser 27. 28 and 15 ondition i i 29' indicate the exhaust conduitfor high 7 The objectof the present invention is to pressure sections- 6and 7 respectively and provide, in connection with a turbine of the athey are connected: by conduits 30 and 31 above type,;.an improvedstructure and arinlet condmts 19 and 21. I-nthe present A inngement foreffecting a cooling of the idle instance, the turbine structures areshown Z ..running turbine rotor,.when running backas :being of theimpulse type, the rings of 7 wards, and for a. consideration of what Ibuclrets being carried bv bucket wheels, but

believe to be novel and my invention, attenit will be 'understood thatthis is only by tion isdirectedto theaccompanying :descripwayofeXampleand is to be taken as repretion and'the. claims appended theretoasenting any suitable typeof turbine: The

In the drawing, Fig.1 is a diagrammatic shaftsl9 and 25 may drive anysuitable load view. of. aaturbine arrangement embodying :oraloads. Forexample, in the case of ship my invention, and Fig. 2 is a sectional iewpropulsion, they may drive such apparatus f difi ti A r as, is requiredin connection with propulsion Trouble from overheating is more particoftheshi-pnv A .i

39 ularly. eXperienced inthecase of compound 1 yIn operation, elasticfluid .is admitted to turbines; that is, turbines comprising ahigheither the ahead turbine section or the repressure section and a lowpressure section :versmg turbine section, depending on which mountedinseparate casing, and in the pres- 'WEIYItIlS desired'to rotate shafts 9and 25.

i cnt instance I have particularly illustrated :When it isdesired torotate the shaftsin a my invention in connecteion with a turbineaforward direction, elastic fluid is admitted 0 of this type; It is tobe understood, howthrough'conduit 12 to annular nozzle chamcver, thatthis is only by way of example, ber l3'from whence it flows throughnozzles and that the invention is not necessarily limindicated at 13 tothe forward turbine secited thereto. v ition'6." After passing throughturbine sec 40 Referring to the drawing, 5 indicates a ition6t-he'elastic fluid flows'by way of conhigh pressure turbine having anahead sec- :duits 28, 30 and 19'to nozzle chamber 20 tion 6 and areversing section A-partifromawhenceit flowsithrough nozzles 20 to tionwall 8 separates the ahead section of theilo-w pressure turbine section17.- From the turbine from the reversing section. :.Tl10 the-low:pressuretnrbine section elastic fluid shaft 9 of the high pressureturbine carries exhausts 'into exhaust "housing 26' from W1 an aheadrotor element lO-and a reversing whence it passes to condenser-27; Whenthe rotor element 11. Elastic fluidis admitted :high pressure turbine--sections are inoperato the high pressure, ahead section through tion,the supply. of elastic fluid to the rea conduit 12 which communicateswith an versing: sections i.s, -of course, shut off. W hen annular steamchest orhnozzle chamber-13 itisdesired to operate shafts 9and-25in andelastic fluid is admitted to the high reversing direction, elastic fluidisrshut'oti pressure reversing section through a conduit from theiaheadsection6 erthe high presl i whichmcommunicates with an annulal sureturbine and is;-adm1tted to the high steam chest ornnozzle. chamber 15;a16minpressure reversingsection"? byway of'condicates a low pressureturbine comprising duit 14, the exhaust from the high pressure Illsection passing by way of conduits 29, 31 and 21 to the reversingsection 18 of the low pressure turbine. After flowing through the lowpressure reversing section the elastic fluid exhausts into housing 26from whence it flows to condenser 27.

A turbine installation of the foregoing type is well known in the artand is to be taken as typical of any suitable arrangement.

It has been found that when a turbine rotor is running in reversedirection it tends to establish a strong current through the blades,creating a backward circulation through the rotor buckets and accordingto the present invention, I provide suitable means for maintaining sucha circulation backwards through an idle running rotor, thereby takingadvantage of what may be termed the pumping action of the blades tocreate a circulation which will serve to cool the rotor through whichthe flow is taking place.

In carrying out my invention, in accordance with the arrangement shownin Fig. 1, I connect nozzle chamber 13 to condenser 27 by means of aconduit 32 and nozzle chamber to condenser 27 by means of a conduit 33.In each of conduits 32 and 33 I provide valves 34 and 35 respectivelywhich are normally biased to open positions by suitable means such asthe springs 36 and 37. Valves 34 and 35 are adapted to be closed by thesteam pressure whenever steam is admitted to chambers 13 or 15. To thisend valves 34 and 35 may be provided with suitable stops 34 and 35 whichlimit their opening to such an extent that when any appreciable amountof elastic fluid starts to flow through them the difference in pressureon opposite sides of the valves will be such as to cause them to close.

The operation is as follows: Assume that elastic fluid is being suppliedto the high pressure turbine section 6 and that the supply of elasticfluid is shut oil from the high pressure reversing section 7. Thepressure of the elastic fluid in annular chamber 13 will effect aclosing of valve 34 against the biasing action of spring 36. Thisdisconnects chamber .13 from condenser 27. No elastic fluid pressurebeing present in chamber 15, spring 37 will hold valve 35 open. There isnow a path of flow for exhaust elastic fluid from housing 26 backwardsthrough reversing turbine section 18, thence through conduit 31 to theexhaust end of reversing turbine section 7, thence backwards throughturbine section 7and through conduit 33 to condenser 27. The reversingturbine rotors 24 and 11 are running idle in their casings and in adirection opposite to their normal direction or rotation and will createa pumping action which will set up a continuous flow of elastic fluidthrough the path just described, which elastic fluid will serve to coolthe rotors 24 and 11. When it is desired to operate the reversingturbine sections, the supply of elastic fluid to the high pressure aheadsection 6 is shut off and that to the high pressure reversing section 7turned on. When the supply of high pressure elastic fluid is shut off tochamber 13 the pressure therein Will be relieved and spring 36 will openvalve 34, thus connecting inlet chamber 13 to condenser 27, On the otherhand, the admission of elastic fluid to chamber 15 will build up apressure therein which will efltect the closing of valve It will thus beseen that chamber 13 is then connected by way of conduit 32 to condenser27, while chamber 15 is disconnected from condenser 27. Turbine rotors23 and 10 are now run in a direction the reverse of their normaldirection and will by their pumping action set up a flow of elasticfluid from housing 26 backwards through turbine 17 to chamber thence byway of conduit to the discharge end of turbine section 6, then throughturbine section 6 to chamber 13 and through conduit 32 to condenser 27in a manner already described in connection with the reversing turbinesections.

It will thus be seen that whenever elastic fluid is supplied to theahead turbine sec tion 6, the path of flow for cooling fluid for theahead turbine sections is shut off, and at the same time the path offlow for cooling fluid for the reversing turbine sections isestablished. Likewise, whenever elastic fluid is supplied to thereversing turbine section 7 the path of flow for cooling fluid for thereversing turbine sections is shut oil and that for the ahead turbinesections established.

The exhaust elastic fluid taken from housing 26 is particularlyadvantageous for cooling because it contains more or less moisturewhich, of course, is capable of taking up a large amount of heat whenbeing converted into steam. FlHtl'lQl'HlOl'Q, it will be seen that by myinvention I utilize for cooling purposes elastic fluid which. has passedentire] y through the turbine sections and .trom which all useful energyhas been ez-ztracted. The elastic fluid used. for cooling purposes doesnot, therefore. detract from the elliciency of the installation.

In 2 I l'lave illustrated a modified. form of valve structure foreffecting the connections between the ahead and. reversing sections ofthe high pressure turbine and the condenser. In this figure passages 40and 41 are connected to the ahead and astern inlets of the high pressureturbine sect-ions; that is, to inlets corresponding to the inlets 13 and15 of Fig. 1. Passage 42 is connected to the condenser after the mannerof pipes 32 and 33 in Fig. 1. 43 and 44 are suitable valves carried by acommon stem 45, the aroperating the valves manually whereby the freedomof the valve structure may be tested. The operation of the arrangementshown in Fig. 2 will be obvious from the descrip-- tion of the structureof Fig. 1. It will be clear that whenever elastic fluid is admitted tothe high pressure ahead turbine section, elastic fluid pressure willclose valve 43 and open valve 44:, thereby connecting the admission endof the high pressure reversing turbine section to the condenser. On theother hand, when elastic fluid is admitted to the high pressurereversing turbine section, the pressure will close valve 44% and openvalve 43, thus connecting the inlet end of the high pressure aheadturbine section to the condenser. The action of the turbine rotor orrotors in effecting a circulation to cool the idle running rotors is thesame as that already described in connection with Fig. 1.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, I havedescribed the principle of operation of my invention, together with theapparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof;but I desire to have it understood that the apparatus shown is onlyillustrative, and that the invention may be carried out by other means.l,

'What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States, is,-

1. The combination with an elastic fluid turbine structure comprisinghigh pressure ahead and reversing sections, low pressure ahead andreversing sections, the ahead sections and the reversing sections beingeach connected in series, and a housing into which the low pressuresections exhaust, of valve means for connecting the inlets of the highpressure ahead and reversing sections to a region of low pressurewhereby the blading of the idle-running sections may pump elastic fluidbackward through such sections in series to the region of low pressure.

2. The combination with a compound turbine structure comprising highpressure ahead and reversing sections and low pressure ahead andreversing sections, the aheaoi sections and the reversing sections beingeach connected in series, and a housing into which the low pressuresections exhaust, of conduits connecting the inlets of the high pressureahead and reversing turbine sections to the region'of the exhausthousing, and valves in said conduits which are actuated by the pressureof elastic fluid admitted to the high pressure turbine sections.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto setmy hand this sixth day of May,1921.

REGINALD FRANCIS HALLIWELL.

